The North Western Railway as Told by Ms Conductor
by LightandSteam
Summary: Tired of the way they are represented in the tv series, the engines request a set of stories be written to set the record straight.
1. Introduction

Thomas and Friends and The Railway Series are owned by The Awdry Family/Hit Entertainment. Original characters are owned by me.

Introduction

Not long ago I was called to the main offices of the North Western Railway by the Board of Directors. Of course, the only one of them I actually saw was Jacqueline Sorin, known to the engines and staff as the Eccentric Director. She earned that name because of the "imaginative" publicity stunts she organizes. But say what you will, most of them pay off, such as referring to Crovan's Gate Works as the Steamworks. Another of her ideas was having Stanley the Silver Engine take pictures surrounded by giant mock-ups of the planets and a space backdrop to cash in on _Stanley in Space. _The pictures went on pamphlets, post cards and even t-shirts. The only one that almost flopped was the tribute to Andrew Lloyd Webber's involvement in our railway. It was a murder mystery train based on _The Phantom of the Opera. _It was going well untill Gordon failed on the Viaduct. She carried it off though, she told the passengers that Erik had done damage to the engine and they would have to wait for the Works Diesel to come. I was fairly certain my presence in her office would be related to one of these schemes, but really who knew. The secretary showed me in and I was greeted warmly.

"Good morning, Ms. Conductor," she said. "I love your shoes, and the red bandana and those earrings. They really liven up that pain navy blue uniform."

My shoes were brown Penny Loafers with brass gears around the edges, and the earrings were just little gold crosses. "Thank you Mrs. Sorin, it's lovely to see you again."

"Likewise. I'm sure you're wondering why I called you here."

"It did cross my mind," I replied.

She nodded and gestured to a _Thomas and Friends _poster. It was from after the switch to CGI. "As I'm sure you know, a lot of nonsense has been spouted about our railway. Engines and directors alike are displeased. I've run a few thoughts pass the other members of the board, and they sent it to the Fat Controller, who went along with it. We feel that something needs to be done to set the record straight about our engines and their histories. At the same time we want to take the opportunity to fill in a few blank spots in the history of the Railway itself and explain some of the glaring questions, such as how we resisted modernization, what happened to the 'TK&E engines' that sort of thing. We decided to put a regular article in the _Real Engine Magazine _titled "The Story of the NWR." I spoke to the editor, Mr. Dancer, and he recommended you to write it."

That was actually a nice thought. I had told Alfie and Sharon enough stories that they probably could've written the article themselves, and it was nice to know they liked my stories enough to publish them. "I'd be honored. When should I have the first one done by?"

The Eccentric Director smiled. "The next issue goes out a week from tomorrow. If you could have it ready by then, that would be splendid."

"I'll have it by then," I replied. "Is there anything else?"

"Yes." She leaned in and produced a piece of paper. "As I'm sure you know, there are a few episodes in the Railway's past that were sensitive at the time, but have since lost their significance. This is your clearance from Mr. Regaby to divulge them to the public."

I looked at the paper she handed me. "Mr. Regaby?"

"Yes. It was his idea to put in the parts about the Railway's history rather than just keep it about the engines. He answers directly to the Fat Controller and only to the Fat Controller, so the Board agreed. See, the Regaby family is as big a part of the North Western as the Hatt family. One Regaby was instrumental in starting the company, his son handled various government projects, and then _his_ son continued his role when he retired. Recently the third Mr. Regaby passed away and naturally his son took over. The new Mr. Regaby has seen fit to declassify the projects his grandfather and father were over. He asked if you would need notes on the details, but I told him your family was also a big part of the Railway and you knew everything that would be necessary."

I read through the list of government projects. "The Sodor Project, Ghost Train, there's nothing here I'm not clear on. I think Mr. Regaby will be pleased with my articles. Now, what stories exactly are the engines unhappy about?"

"Bash and Dash would like you to make it known that they are not the mindless twits seen on screen, the maintenance diesels want the 'Dieselworks' question to be settled, and Thomas is ready to tell the story of how he came to the North Western." A large smile spread across her face. "Now, the engines have compiled a list of voice actors they think should play them."

For some reason I had to laugh at that.

She continued. "The funny part is they delegated Percy to ask _me_ to send the list to Hit Entertainment."

"Poor Percy," I said through the giggles. "What atcors did they pick."

She read the list. "In numerical order: Daniel Radcliff as Thomas, Robert Vaughn as Edward, Hugh Grant as Henry, Liam Neeson as Gordon, Rowan Atkinson as James, Pierce Brosnon as Percy (based on the voice he did in _The Great Discovery_), Roger Lloyd Pack as Toby, Jude Law (when he played Watson) as Duck, Kelly Macdonald as Emily, and Gina Bellman as Annie and Clarabel. Rosie is happy with Teresa Gallagher and Thomas believes you should appear in place of Mr. Perkins and be played by Rebecca St. James."

Having worked with the engines most of my life, I can say the list was surprisingly accurate, except for one part. "But I don't look anything like Rebecca St James."

"I actually think you do, even the voice is pretty close," the Eccentric Director replied. "In any case I look forward to reading your articles, Ms. Conductor."

"Thank you, Mrs. Sorin. I'll do my best."


	2. The Beginning

Thomas and Friends and The Railway Series are owned by The Awdry Family/Hit Entertainment. Original characters are owned by me.

The Beginning

The North Western Railway started as many things do, during a conversation over drinks. 1914, Germany was starting a play for supremacy and World War I was just getting under way. Two men named Albert Regaby and Stephen Hale were sitting together at a small pub in Ulfstead. They were discussing the growing military threat.

"I tell you, Hale, it's really starting to bother me," Regaby remarked.

"You're right Regaby," Hale agreed, "Germany _is _getting a little too brave for comfort."

"I'm not talking about Germany!" Regaby replied. "I'm talking about Ireland!"

Hale just looked at him over his glass. "Ireland?"

Regaby nodded as if it should be obvious. "Well yes. The entire British military is going up against Germany. And even if they weren't, Sodor is protected by the mainland and a lot of sea. Now think about this. Ireland has been acting out because of 'home rule' for ages now, and what better time to act on it than while every British soldier is heading out for Germany? To make matters worse, this time Sodor would be right in the middle."

"Fine, you're right, Ireland needs dealing with. Now, the question is, how ya gonna do it?"

The questioned was considered and more drinks were had for a few minutes until...

"A railway!" Regaby blurted.

"A railway?" Hale asked.

"Yes, a strategic railway to patrol the Island's coast for Irish ships."

Hale looked at him once again. "You realize we already have seven railways on the Island, don't you?"

Regaby dismissed this with a wave of the hand. "Two are horse drawn, two are narrow gauge, one is in the wrong place, and the last two don't cover enough ground. No, we need to build a new, bigger, longer railway to cover the entire southern and western coasts."

Drinks flowed freely for a little while longer.

"So what if two are horse drawn?" Hale asked with uncharacteristic slurred speech.

Regaby looked up from his glass. "Well, the obvious superiority of steam power is..."

"Nonsense," Hale replied. "Horses are fine, strong, elegant animals that can..."

"Now really," Regaby cut in. "I am sorry but if a better means of power is available then I'm not passing up on it just because of some expensive sentimental rot!"

"It isn't rot!" Hale retorted. "A steam engine will never have the same soul and feeling as a good strong pony. You can't get the same connection to a steam..."

"Says the man who spent thirty minutes talking to the engines on Harwick and Ballaswein!" Regaby shot back.

Both took a break to look after their ales and think of what to say next.

The whole idea of a new railway would probably have ended in painful hangovers had it not been for the man silently reading the paper in the next table. His name was Henry John Norramby, Earl of Sodor. He was proud of his Island. It was picturesque, it was industrious, it was well and truly poor. Most Sudrians would probably have him burned for heresy if he'd told them this, but Sodor _would_ be better off if it could be linked to the mainland. He'd tried to help the Sodor and Mainland Railway achieve this but that was a lost cause before he even began. On this night he was considering new ideas, and they were falling through almost as fast as he could make them up. A rail link would be best, but the S&M was hopeless. A new company could be formed, but no one on Sodor had the money to pull that off. The government should have sufficient funds, but every wise Earl knew you couldn't trust the state to put out that kind of capitol unless they really thought it was worth it. He'd have to convince Sudrians it was in their best interest and Parliament it was a worth while idea. He tried to think through this problem but the two drunks behind him were making concentration difficult. _Why can't they argue quietly? _He thought to himself. Not overhearing their ramblings was impossible, so he listened with amusement to their conversation. _Hang on a tick, those drunken slobs could be the answer to my prayers._ The idea would need some fine tuning of course, but it could well pay off in the end.

The next day, after they'd had time to sober up, Norramby called Regaby and Hale to his mansion discuss business. "Gentleman, I asked you here to discuss the brilliant idea you were discussing last night."

"Last night?" Regaby asked.

"Yes," Norramby replied. "Forgive me, but I couldn't help over hearing your idea to amalgamate a few railways to patrol the coastlines." _Not quite what they said, but they won't know that. _"Such protection _is _much needed, as you pointed out, and I believe I know how to achieve it."

Hale leaned over to Regaby. "Whose idea was it amalgamate the railways?"

"Sounds like something you'd come up with," Regaby answered.

The Earl continued. "Now, Mr. Regaby, it would be most beneficial if you would compose a booklet of arguments in favour of our idea. I suggest you play up the threat from Ireland and the need for regular patrols. From there I would point out the advantages of doing so by rail."

Regaby considered this. "I think I can manage that, but, is there that much of a threat from _Ireland?"_

Norramby didn't even _try _to hide his bewilderment. _How drunk were they last night? _"I'll get you access to the official records in Suddery and I'm sure you'll see what I mean. Now, once your report circulates through Parliament I'll start lobbying for a Royal Charter which will then be handled by me. When the paper work is out of the way, we'll need locomotives. Our safest bet is probably to purchase existing engines from companies on the mainland rather try to build them ourselves. Would you be willing to look after that aspect Mr. Hale?"

"It would be my pleasure," Hale responded. "What sort of engines should I look for?"

"Anything you can get," Norramby told him. "We're just starting so I don't think we can afford to be picky."

And with that it began. Regaby did indeed find sufficient evidence to justify the need for a railway to patrol the Sudrian coast, and Norramby spent to the next six months pushing the report whenever the opportunity arose. Finally, after a long, hard battle, the charter was granted, and Norramby waisted _no _time in putting it into action.

He put Regaby in charge of the business side and sent Hale off to acquire locomotives. Norramby, for his part, dealt with deciding which railways to take in and breaking the news to those concerned. He decided on the three standard gauge railways that were standing on land the charter covered. These were the Sodor and Mainland, the Wellsworth and Suddery, and the Tidmouth, Knapford and Elsbridge. These were adequitte for local needs, but work would need to be done to bring it up to proper standards and, most importantly, link it to the mainland. It crossed his mind that the three should probably connect somehow, and double tracking where possible wouldn't be a bad idea. A chief engineer would be required, and he knew where to look.

"So you were apprenticed in Swindon and at one point worked directly with Isambard Kingdom Brunel. Is that correct?"

The man across the table from him nodded. "Yes Sir. I was not apprenticed to Mr. Brunel directly, but did often work closely with him."

"And after that you became involved with the engineering firm A.W. Dry and rose through the ranks with remarkable swiftness."

The man shrugged. "Some have said that."

"It says here you designed the vertical boiler engines of the TK&E as well as two pump engines for the Harwick and Ballaswein Atmospheric Railway."

"Correct, but the pump engines have since been converted to conventional locomotives."

"Not quite conventional. Tell me more about them."

"Well, their pumps worked via a series of gears and pulleys powered by steam from the boilers. They had to be converted when the tubing system proved too expensive to maintain. We kept the gears and simply used the pulley system to turn the wheels. As pumps they had special funnels which eliminated some of the smoke. Out of vanity we kept these on the engines after their conversion."

"Quite impressive. I'm also interested in your work with bridge building."

"Yes, my crown jewel is the Rolling River Bridge on Ward Fell that I built for the now defunct Sodor Tramways."

Ah yes, Sodor Tramways. A three foot gauge line built on the mountain side of Ward Fell. It only had one engine, Flora, and ran to a small coal mine known as Morgan's Mine. This was put out of business by the Skarloey Railway and Flora had been cut up only recently. The bridge, however, was still in perfect condition with or without regular maintenance.

"A high recommendation indeed," Norramby complimented. "Perfect for the project at hand. This would be your annual salary." He slid a piece of paper over to the other man.

He looked at the paper. "I'll take."

Norramby shook his hand. "Welcome to the North Western Railway, Mr. Hatt."


	3. Thomas, Edward and Amy

Thomas and Friends and The Railway Series are owned by The Awdry Family/Hit Entertainment. Original characters are owned by me.

Thomas, Edward and Amy

Stephen Hale was in London trying to get engines for the North Western Railway. The company had inherited nine engines from three companies it absorbed, but that wasn't quite enough. Plus five of those nine were vertical boiler types with rather pitiful brake power. In any case, Topham Hatt had completed the stone arch bridge from Sodor to Walney Island and was nearly done with the lift bridge from Walney to Barrow-in-Furness. Regaby had set up the corporate office in Vicarstown on Walney. Why he didn't put the Railway's headquarters on Sodor was best known to Regaby, but so be it. All this had taken several months, meaning the year had passed to 1915. During that time Hale had successfully gotten the NWR one engine, an LSWR T3 which he named Amy, after his fiance'. She was being kept in a shed near St. Pancras Station until the NWR had sheds of its own. The problem wasn't that no engines were available, it was that no engines for available at a price the the North Western could afford, which was close to nothing. The only reason he'd managed to afford Amy was that she was in serious need of repair, which only showed his desperateness considering the NWR didn't even have it's own workshop. Perhaps finding a tender engine was aiming too high, perhaps a tank engine would be better. He caught the next train to Southampton Docks and the search began. He'd only been in Southampton a few minutes when he noticed an engine being shunted into an isolated siding, always a good sign. The engine was number 100, an LB&SC E2. He found a workman. "Excuse me, do you know why that engine is being placed in that siding?"

"Yesir," the worker replied, "he's just been ordered into the war effort. I don't know where they'll send him."

Hale considered this. "Is there someone I can speak to about that?"

He wound up in the office of George Kenneth Scott-Moncrieff, evidently the man who had the final say in these matters.

"An E2?" Scott-Moncrieff asked, "I haven't ordered an E2." He shifted through his papers. "Here it is, the engine you're talking about was supposed to be a J23 from the Great Northern Railway. How could they possible have mixed it up _that _badly?"

Presently a man came in with a message.

"The J23's been delivered?" Scott-Moncrieff read with utter bewilderment. "Then how did we get an E2!?"

Hale simply sat and watched as all this happened, silently wondering if this kind of nonsense was normal when trying to start a railway."

By now Scott-Moncrieff was on the phone. "What do you mean they've already written it off? But we can't use an E2!" At last he hung up. "I've had it with this E2 business. Hale, you've got yourself an engine. Take it and get it away from me."

Hale couldn't believe what he was hearing. He accepted the scribbled order for the engine to be transfered to him and left.

Number 100, the engine in question, didn't quite understand what was happening when he left Southampton, but he was promised a chance to see more of the country and he was looking forward to it.

Hale parked him in the shed next to Amy. He noticed there was an envelope stuck to one of 100's cab walls. "Amy, this is..." He read the name on the envelope. "This is Thomas, I've just bought him for our railway."

"Hello," Thomas said brightly.

"Hello, pleasure to meet you," Amy replied.

"Likewise," Thomas responded.

Hale was just leaving them when a telegram from Albert Regaby was delivered to him. It read HAVE MADE A DEAL WITH THE FURNESS RAILWAY. NEED FOR ENGINES NO LONGER PRESSING. RETURN TO SODOR WITH WHAT WE HAVE. Hale folded it and put it in his pocket. "Looks like we'll be going to your new home tomorrow."

Thomas and Amy were too excited to sleep.

"I wonder what Sodor is like," Thomas said.

"I don't know," Amy replied. "Mr. Hale says we're going to have to help build the Railway, or rather _you're _going to."

Thomas looked over. "What about you?"

Amy looked at the rails. "I have a cracked safety valve and a few other problems," she told him. "Mr. Hale says I'll be mended when the Railway finished its workshops, but that won't be right away."

Thomas was now determined to do whatever he could to make that go faster. Amy was the first friend he'd made as part of the North Western, and he wanted to help her get mended as soon as possible.

The next day Thomas was steamed up and he pulled Amy all the way to Vicarstown. He shunted Amy into a siding and went to receive his work orders.

"So I'll only be pushing trucks around the yard!?" Thomas huffed.

Mr. Regaby nodded. "I'm afraid so."

Thomas was speechless. For one thing he was promised breath taking views that he certainly wouldn't get if he was stuck in the yard, but more importantly he wouldn't be able to help with the workshop for Amy either.

His thoughts were cut off as a red 'Large Seagull' class engine from the Furness came in with a line of two blue open topped coached and a brakevan. At the time this was the North Western's Director's train, which was used for inspections and other things of that ilk. The engine smiled at Thomas. "Hello. I'm called Edward. Who are you?"

"I'm Thomas," the smaller engine replied. "Are you from the other railway?"

"If by that you mean the Furness Railway, then yes," Edward replied. "I was supposed to be sent back by now but your Mr. Regaby pulled some kind trick and here I stayed. My director wasn't too upset because of my poor steaming." He looked at Thomas. "You seem upset."

"I am," Thomas told him. "That green engine over there, Amy, needs some repairs and she can't have them until the workshop is finished. I was hoping to work there to try to help her but my new director just told me I'll be working in this yard."

Edward smiled at the young tank engine. "Tell you what, I pull Mr. Regaby's private train, so I can be in most places most of the time. I'll try to keep on eye on things for you."

Thomas smiled gratefully. "Thank you, Edward."

"My pleasure," Edward said as the guard's whistle blew and he had to leave.

Edward kept his promise. Every chance he got he asked engines helping at the workshop to try to get things done properly and quickly, and he kept Thomas and Amy up to date on how things were going. Just before the end of the year the Crovan's Gate works were completed and Amy was sent to be mended. Thomas went too, but only to have his tanks extended, which didn't take nearly as long. He also had his tanks lowered, meaning a splasher had to be added over his front wheels. Both they and Edward were also painted in a red-lined blue livery, the official colours of the NWR. Only Thomas had his number painted on him, Edward and Amy carried theirs on plates in their cabs. Thomas and Edward were numbered one and two because they would be working on the main part of the railway that was connected to Vicarstown. Amy was numbered T10 because she would be working on the part of the railway where the W&S and TK&E engines worked, which was still cut off from the main network until the new viaduct could be completed. Edward became something of a mentor to Thomas, and they remain firm friends to this day. Thomas continued to refer to the Furness as 'the Other Railway', a name which the railway workers quickly adopted. The name stuck and would pass to the LMS after grouping, British Rail after Nationalization, First North Western after Privatisation, and is now held by Northern Rail.

The North Western Railway was open for service.


	4. Survivors

Thomas and Friends and The Railway Series are owned by The Awdry Family/Hit Entertainment. Original characters are owned by me.

Survivors

While the viaduct connecting the two halves of the railway was being built, Amy worked on what was referred to as the Tidmouth End. She became the main engine on that part of the line because the TK&E engines (nicknamed the Coffee Pots) and the W&S tank engines didn't have the strength or the brake power that she did. She could take longer trains and save trips, and money. Passengers from Elsbridge used to have to stop at Knapford and change trains to go to Suddery, now Amy pulled the train straight through herself. The Suddery engines were stronger than the Elsbridge engines, and besides that there was the extension to Ffarquar, which was taking three out of five of the Coffee Pots, so she mainly stayed on the section between Tidmouth and Elsbridge.

Even without her the W&S engines were running their trains as well as they always did. These engines were similar to the Great Western Railway's 1076 class of 0-6-0 side tank engines. They had been given the same blue paint with red stripes as Amy and were numbered T1-T4. Their names were Pepi, Posey, Irene and Richard. They were faithful hard workers, but they weren't in the best condition. Mr. Regaby was already planning to have them and the Coffee Pots cut up and replaced as soon as this became financially possible.

Irene and Richard were starting to let panic set in, but Pepi and Posey were still determined to stay positive. They were defending this outlook to their more downcast siblings one morning.

"He's already brought in that new tender engine to take our main passenger service," Richard remarked.

"Amy pulls one train that none of us could manage alone," Posey countered. "Besides, she mostly stays on the line to Elsbridge."

"But you know the Moody Director's attitude toward locomotives," Irene put in.

"If a better option can be found, then the original will be replaced," they all said in unison.

"Yes," Pepi replied, "but a better option can't be found at the moment."

"But that doesn't mean that will remain the case for long," Richard shot back.

Pepi rolled his eyes. "Well maybe the Moody Director will have been replaced by then."

"Don't bank on it," Irene remarked with a dark huff.

Amid the arguing they carried on as usual, at least until Mr. Regaby (the Moody Director behind his back) came to the sheds and made an announcement. "With number T10 seeing to the passenger service and the more strenuous goods runs, there is only need for three of you in active service."

The engines glanced at each other.

The Moody Director continued. "T3," referring to Irene, "is in the worst condition, so I'm afraid you'll be staying in the shed for the foreseeable future." And he turned his back and walked away.

The second he was out of sight Irene fell apart. "I told you!" she blurted. "I've been withdrawn and he's going to have me scrapped!"

The other three tried to comfort her but she was now sobbing uncontrollably.

This turn of events made the threat of withdrawal much more real to Pepi and Posey, but they stayed brave. "Run our trains to time and without accident and even the Moody Director won't be able to call us useless."

They did their best but eventually Posey started leaking steam. "I get so out of breath," she confided to Pepi in the shed. "Driver's tried to make me better but it's just a patch."

Richard didn't comment, thinking it best not to say that the end was near for her as well.

The next morning Pepi woke up with problems as well. His tubes felt all clogged. His driver cleaned at buckets of sludge but it didn't help much. The two were weighing their options when a traction engine pulled up next to the shed pulling a wagon behind him. They watched as a wench was hooked to Irene and started to pull her onto the trailer.

"Where are we going?" Irene asked shakily.

The workmen couldn't look her in the eye.

She closed her eyes in grim understanding. "I see."

"Irene!" Her three siblings called in horror.

Irene looked over. "Now now, we knew this was coming." Over a month of sitting in the shed waiting had given her time to come to terms and settle her affairs with the others. "I've been ready for quite some time, and besides this means a better chance for the three of you."

"Don't talk like that!" Richard huffed. "You know it won't be the same without you."

"Pepi and Posey are already having trouble, and it won't be long for you Richard. When parts come to mend you think of it as a gift from me."

The other were speechless.

"Irene," Posey whispered softly.

"Don't worry, Sister," Irene replied gently. "Just fight to keep going the way you always have."

The workmen fastened her to the trailer. "It was a pleasure working with all of you. Remember me fondly."

With that the traction engine started to puff away. The three engines she left behind gave a long and loud toot of their whistles, and she was gone.

The three tank engines went about the rest of the day in somber moods.

Pepi and Posey got steadily worse. They began to reach a point that they truly feared for their lives, but the Moody Director had no choice but to repair them. "We have spare parts anyway and I can't get any other engines to this part of the railway."

The engines were contemplative as the workman saw to their issues. They both knew where the parts had come from.

"Irene must want us to hang on a bit longer," Pepi remarked.

"I suppose," Posey agreed. "To carry on her legacy, and that of the Welsworth and Suddery Railway." The loss of their sister had shaken to two engines, but it had the biggest effect on Richard. His bitterness toward the Moody Director couldn't be put into words. His mindset of 'the end will come' was gone, replaced by a vicious drive to survive and protect his brother and sister.

But I'm sorry to say fate wasn't on their side. Traffic steadily decreased until there was only enough work for one of them. Richard would refuse to get up steam, leaving more work for Pepi and Posey. They took it in turns to pull trains, each periodically refusing to go out until the other was chosen. They also tried to convince Richard to work before the Moody Director deemed him surplus and had him cut up as well, but he stuck to his self sacrifice.

At last Mr. Topham Hatt, the Chief Engineer of the North Western Railway, came to the shed. He looked over Richard and finally forced him to fire. "Right. T4, Richard, I'm afraid you'll be running this line alone as from today."

This sent the engines into a tizzy. "Take me!" they all yelled at once. "Shut up, both of you!" they ordered each other. This descended into incoherent shouts as each demanded to be taken in place of their siblings. No one wanted to condemn the others, so they skirted around the fact that two of them were being taken anyway.

"Silence!" Mr. Hatt yelled. The three engines stared down at him. Their faces were so fierce yet solemn that he nearly had to look away. "Listen. The traffic on this line only justifies one engine besides T10. In light of this T1 and T2, Pepi and Posey I believe your names are, are being transfered to maintenance under my direct supervision." Looking at their faces, he knew what was coming, and responded by putting his hands to his ears as cheers and whistles erupted from the three tank engines.

Pepi and Posey put their all into finishing the new railway. Double track was laid all the way from the viaduct to Tidmouth, and bridges and tunnels all along the route were upgraded and widened. Sadly, it was during this time that Richard fell prey to a boiler explosion due to poor maintenance at the hands of the Moody Director. After that Amy took fool responsibility for the trains on that line. Pepi and Posey felt the loss, but this time they had Amy and the Coffee Pots for moral support and found coping to be much easier. When the line was finished they went to live at Crovan's Gate works. Their favourite part was that two silver nameplates were hung on the back wall. One reading "Irene", and the other reading "Richard".


	5. Birth of a Dynasty

Thomas and Friends and The Railway Series are owned by The Awdry Family/Hit Entertainment. Original characters are owned by me.

Birth of a Dynasty

1923. Railways all across the UK are being absorbed into four companies; The LNER, the GWR, the Southern and the LMS.

On Sodor the North Western Railway has been completed. Pepi and Posey are well established as its maintenance engines, mainline services are being run by Amy the T3, and Mr. Albert Regaby is still the chairman and still referred to by the engines as the Moody Director. The engines from the Furness Railway have been returned, and the railway is running with Edward and Amy on the mainline, the five Coffee Pots on the newly named Ffarquar Branch, Thomas shunting Vicarstown Yard, the Welsworth Branch has been closed.

Mr. Regaby was in his office at Vicarstown Station. The last thing he was expecting was an enraged Stephen Hale, now the most influential member of the Railway Board. to storm into his office.

"Regaby!" Hale thundered. "What do you intend to do?"

Regaby barely looked up from his desk. "About what exactly?"

Hale glared at him. "You know what. The London, Midland and Scottish."

"They're the companies who will absorbing us, aren't they?" Regaby asked nonchalantly.

"Am I to understand you have no intention of responding to this?"

Regaby put down his pen with a huff. "Hale, the Prime Minister put the act into motion two years ago. What do you suggest I do?"

Hale pulled a copy of the Railways Act of 1921 out of his pocket. "The reason for this is act is to cut the losses of the railways of Britain."

"We've been running at a loss for quite some time now," Regaby reminded him.

"You wouldn't like my response to that," Hale responded. "In any case, it says here that the companies who have not formed a plan for amalgamation will be amalgamated in a manner suggested by a tribunal."

Regaby tapped the papers on his desk. "These are our plan," he said with a touch of annoyance in his voice. "We're joining the LMS."

Hale tried one last time. "I've spoken to the chairmen and directors of the Harwick and Ballaswein Railway as well as the Cronk and Harwick Railway. They're willing to join the North Western Railway as long as it means they don't get absorbed into the LMS."

"What's the difference?" Regaby asked in a deadpan voice.

"Those companies can't hold on by themselves, amalgamation is unavoidable for them, but if there's a chance for them to stay under Sudrian management they'll take it rather than submit to some faceless foriegn company." Regaby chuckled. "Sodor is part of the UK after all. They'll adapt."

Hale could see he was getting no where. "You've haven't heard the last of this." And he left.

True to his word, Hale called a meeting of the Board to discuss the issue. A vote was held and a decision was unanimously reached.

Hale held up his hand in triumph. "I present the new Chairman of the North Western Railway; Mr. Topham Hatt!"

A round of applause greeted this.

Regaby stepped up to make a fair well speech. "You can try till your hearts are content, but but mark my words, this will end in a take over from the LMS. No matter what you think of the job I did, and I do know what you all thought, Mr. Hatt won't be able to save you. NWR might as well stand for 'No Where Railway." I didn't want to see the company overrun either, but when it happens don't come crying to me." And with that he walked away.

Topham Hatt stepped up. "I personally believe now is not the time for speeches. Our job now is finding engines and getting ourselves to a standard the coming tribunal will accept. Mr. Hale?"

"Yes, Mr. Hatt."

"I'd like you to see to getting us engines while I tend to the Harwick companies."

"A pleasure as always."

And the battle began. Hale managed to find a cheap engine by getting a prototype known as the A0 that was no longer needed. The workman referred to this as Gordon and Hale gladly accepted it as an official name.

Mean while Hatt was in Harwick. He'd received word that Hale had gotten three engines from the LNER, one bought out right and the other two on trial. Having met with the former chairmen of the other two railways, Hatt felt everything on his end was in order. The was only one problem. "The Harwick and Ballaswein is fine as long it's under our banner, but I'm afraid the Cronk and Harwick is going need bringing up a bit."

Lord Callan, the former chairmen of the C&H put his head in his palm. "It's the horses isn't it?"

"I'm afraid so," Hatt replied and hurriedly added "Listen, I like the horses too, and I intend to let you keep them, but while the Inspectorate is here we need to look like we have steam power."

"But we can't get any here fast enough!" Callan replied with a hint of desperateness.

"And we need 1 and 2 on the H&B," it's former chairmen added.

"I'm aware," Hatt commented. He'd built the H&B's 1 and 2 himself and he knew how badly the former atmospheric railway needed them. "Do any of you have a traction engine?"

"I do," Callan replied.

"We'll need that," Hatt told him.

The Inspector arrived the next day. His agenda was to check the two Harwick railways first and look to the rest of the network. First on the list was the Cronk and Harwick. He checked his watch, noting that it was time for the first train. It came as a shock when it arrived. "Is that a traction engine converted to run on rails?" he asked.

"It certainly is," Hatt replied. "This is Fergus, a very faithful machine, I must say."

The Inspector made a note of that as well and stepped onto the foot plate.

Hatt leaned down to Fergus. "Remember, we have to do this right."

"Yes Sir," Fergus replied.

The ride went better than most people were expecting it to. Hatt and Callan had written the time table specifically for Fergus so time wasn't a problem, and the loads were kept to a weight the 'Railway Traction Engine" could handle easily. The two men waited anxiously after the trail to hear the Inspector's thoughts, but they had to wait until after he passed the H&B. This time the trial wasn't an issue as Hatt knew exactly what his two geared engines could handle and acted accordingly to show them in a good light.

The Inspector got down from Number 2's cab and looked over his notes.

"These two are fine, but you'll have to prove to me that the main part of the North Western Railway can stand up by itself before I allow it to become an independant company."

Hatt allowed himself a sigh of relief, but he knew he wasn't out of the woods yet.


	6. Fighting Spirit

Thomas and Friends and The Railway Series are owned by The Awdry Family/Hit Entertainment. Original characters are owned by me.

Fighting Spirit

The three LNER engines backed into Vicarstown Shed.

The largest, Gordon, was a Pacific prototype. He had been bought out right by the NWR, the other two only had numbers and were only there on loan. 87546 was a prototype as well, of a new class to be known as B17. 98462 was a B12. They'd all been painted in NWR blue for the duration of their stay.

"A bit small to be the main shed, isn't it?" 98462 remarked.

"Well what do you expect?" 87546 responded. "A small and shoddy shed for a small and shoddy railway."

The Sodor engines were indignant.

Amy let off steam. "I'll have you know that the North Western handles more traffic than other railway on Sodor."

98462 sneered. "The way I heard it, this railway is about to be taken over because it can't stand on it's own."

"That was the fault of our former Chairman," Edward responded. "We're under new management now, and we've been doing much better."

87546 glanced over. "Quite right. It is the fault of your Chairman, for operating such old and under powered engines as yourselves."

"Now 87546, there was absolutely no call for that!" said Gordon, who was nearly as young as 87546 himself.

All eyes turned to Gordon. Everyone present had expected him to side with the LNER engines.

Gordon continued. "You should feel a sense of relief that at least one company is willing to keep its old engines. We'll all eventually reach a time when we become old and under powered. The knowledge that Mr. Hatt won't just cast us aside actually gives me comfort about reaching that time."

98462 scoffed. "These companies are all the same. We're just machines to them! And mark my words, time will show that your precious Topham Hatt is no different."

"You're wrong," Edward broke in. "I pull the Director's Train, you tend to hear things during those runs. We've just absorbed the Cronk and Harwick Railway. That line is completely horse drawn. Most people would have forced the company to modernize with steam power, but not Mr. Hatt. Believe me, he knows the benefits he's giving up, but he cares more about letting those who built and live on the line run it the way they see fit. Our two maintenance engines were one signature away from the scrap heap until Mr. Hatt stepped in to save them. Any real businessman would've known the economic thing to do would be to let them go and sell the scrap, but Mr. Hatt understands that money isn't everything. That is what will always set him apart."

A respectful silence fell over the shed. Edward had made an excellent point. Topham Hatt had only been their Chairman for a short time, but he had already earned the respect and trust of every engine and workman under him.

The LNER engines didn't seem to be able to understand that.

"I want you all to realize something," 98462 hissed darkly. "If this railway goes on the way you make it sound, it'll be a distant memory in a matter of months! And then where do you all think you'll be? Not even the Great Topham Hatt will be able to save you! You'd be better to save yourselves the effort and let LMS win." And with that he puffed away to take his first train.

One by one, each engine went to do a job until Gordon and 87546 were the only ones left in the shed.

"Gordon, why are defending them so strongly?"

Gordon looked his former colleague over. "we're both prototypes of our classes, 87546. Created to test designs and hammer out rough spots. When my design was complete, the LNER cast me aside. What do you think they will do when _your_ design is complete?"

A driver came and Gordon left 87546 to his thoughts.

Later that day 98462 was in Tidmouth at the head of a long passenger train. He noticed Mr. Hatt and the Inspector boarding the train. A dark thought crossed his mind, and he intended to act on it. He waited until he was between Tidmouth and Knapford, then stopped in the middle of nowhere and refused to go any further. His driver and fireman checked him all over, but couldn't find anything wrong. "I feel so sick in my boiler," 98462 said glumly.

The crew tried again, but no matter what 98462 wouldn't budge. "It's no use," the driver finally said. "We'll have to call for another engine.'

The closest engine was Amy, who was at Knapford with a stopping goods. She brought her train back and 98462 was coupled to her brake van.

"Do you honestly think you can pull me and my train as well as your own?" 98462 asked with a chuckle.

"Why else would you be coupled to my train?" Amy shot back.

"Best of luck," 98462 replied sarcastically.

Amy whistled bravely and the game was on. Because of the loose couplings, she could pick up the trucks one at a time, but she felt the full weight of the coaches all at once. She briefly ground to a hault, but with a bit more steam she was able to get going. It was easier once she gained momentum, but it was still hard going. She'd all ready made her delivery at Knapford and thus went straight on to Welsworth. Here she found Edward in a siding. He had been on his way to Tidmouth with Stephen Hale when he'd been instructed to stop at Welsworth.

"Edward, thank Haven you're here!" said an exhausted Amy. "I need help getting this lot up the hill, please."

Edward uncoupled from his train. "That's precisely why I was instructed to wait for you here." He buffered up to the back of the train and whistled.

The two engines snorted up the hill. The Troublesome Trucks started holding back, as did 98462. Amy and Edward were determined not to let the train beat them. The noise echoed all around. They started to slip once, but they both put down sand and managed to get more traction.

"Just. A. Bit. Fur-ther," Amy said.

"Keep. Pull-ing. Keep. Pull-ing," Edward replied.

"Two old engines, pulling hard. We're having fun so be on guard," sang the trucks.

"Keep holding back," 98462 whispered.

At last they reached the top. Edward whistled to let Amy know he was backing off. "87546 will be at the next station to take the coaches," he told her.

Amy whistled her thanks and continued on her way.

98462 was uncoupled at the next station. He smiled when he saw 87546 backing up to him.

"What are you playing at?" 87546 whispered harshly.

"These engines need to face reality," 98462 told him. "The Inspector's on the train. If the train doesn't get there on time..."

"It reflects you and the LNER, you twit!" 87546 told him. "You're not really part of this railway!"

"That's the North Western's fault for bringing in inferior engines," 98462 said. "You know how inspectors are."

"Why does it matter so much to you?" 87546 asked.

"Because the engines here have their funnels in the clouds. This railway needs to get up to date or get taken over. They won't get up to date so I'm getting them taken over."

The Guard blew his whistle and 87546 pulled away. "You've missed the obvious alternative. We're here on trial. If we run our trains to the best of our abilities, the directors will see that newer engines are better and bring more of us in."

"You expect a railway that keeps horses to realize that?" 98462 shot back. "If we do get bought by this railway I'm not working with such inferior engines. I'd rather be sent back home than have them stay so comfortable in their 'safe haven'."

87546 started to truly worry about the engine behind him. 87546 thought the North Western needed newer engines too, but he didn't necessarily want the older ones to be scrapped like 98462 seemed to. Gordon's words had been going through his mind all day and they were starting to make sense. "And what happens when you get old and out of date?"

"I'll be scrapped, you ninny," 98462 replied. "It's what happens to old engines. You brake down, you go to the siding at the back and you die! A few quick bursts of pain and then oblivion! It's what we were built to do, are you really so scared of that?"

"You're insane!" 87546 barked.

"Am I?" 98462 shot back. "Or are you just afraid of the truth?"

They went on in silence after that.

Back at Vicarstown Shed Topham Hatt, Stephen Hale, Lord Callan and the engines waited to hear the verdict from the Inspector. He read through his papers. "Well, I can certainly say haven't encountered anything quite like this. I don't see how those vertical boiler engines are still going, nor do I see how that other line keeps going with just one locomotive that isn't even a real locomotive, but I suppose the Act was passed to cut the losses of companies exactly like those. As for the failure of engine number 98462, I have made note of that and will recommend the LNER further inspect the entire class. However, I was impressed by the manner in which the situation was handled. It is clear to me, Mr. Hatt, that you are fully capable of bringing the North Western Railway up to snuff and keeping it there. I will recommend you not be absorbed."

A chorus of cheers and whistles erupted as soon as he was gone.

"But, I don't understand..." 98462 said.

"I tried to tell you," 87546 replied. "You went about the thing the wrong way and it's come back to bite you."

98462 still wasn't convinced. "But the Inspector saw how old the engines are."

"Yes," Mr. Hatt told him, "but he also the determination of those engines, and the people that work with them. It is that kind of fighting spirit that will ensure the North Western Railway overcomes all odds. Good business sense is obviously essential, but so is intuition and the drive to persevere in the midst of adversity."

"Regaby didn't have it," Mr. Hale cut in, "and it was killing the Railway. All he knew was business, he couldn't understand that it also takes faith and endurance to make a go of anything."

"And knowing your clientele," Lord Callan added. "The LMS would've put steam engine after steam engine in Harwick. I admit steam does have its uses, but the people the railway serves prefer horses and if the company doesn't comply with that our business will dry up, and then it won't matter what kind of power we used."

"May I say something, Sir?" Edward asked.

"Yes, what is it?" Mr. Hatt replied.

"I think I speak for all of us, when I say that we couldn't have more respect for the way you fought to stop the company getting absorbed. In addition, we all came here with one problem or another. You gave us a chance, and for that you have our undying gratitude and loyalty. You have our word that we will work as hard as you do to make the North Western Railway the best it can be."

"Here, here!" the others all agreed.

Mr. Hatt nodded and cleared his throat. "Thank you," he said quietly.

He and the other two men turned and walked away.

98462 remained quiet the rest of the evening. The words he'd just heard had had little effect.


	7. The Great Train Robberies

Thomas and Friends and The Railway Series are owned by The Awdry Family/Hit Entertainment. Original characters are owned by me.

The Great Train Robberies

It was a dreary morning about a month after the final formation of the group of railway now known as the Big Five. A young man named Timothy Pierce was arriving at a job interview with George Hughes, the Chief Engineer of the Other Railway.

"You come very highly recommended, Mr. Pierce," Hughes told him.

"Thank you, Sir," Pierce replied.

"According to your resumé most of your work has been around the locomotive works at Wolverhampton. I'm particularly impressed by this note on the Class 517 engine. Tell me, how did you manage to make an entire locomotive vanish without getting caught?"

Pierce smiled as he remembered the night. He'd done it by getting a job at the works under a different name, and then causing a chain of events that finished in an engine tipping over. During the commotion he'd had an accomplice bring in a lorry and they carted the little 0-4-2 away. If anyone had gotten suspicious he would've shown them forged papers ordering the removal of the engine. "I simply knew what kind of distraction to cause. He's working at a coaling plant now."

Hughes nodded. "I think you're exactly what I'm looking for. Have you ever heard of the A0 locomotive?"

A few days latter Timothy Pierce was the new errand runner at Doncaster. This job was perfect because it allowed him to move about the entire workshop. It didn't take long before he knew exactly where the designs were kept and when there would be no one around to see him go in. When he was sure the coast was clear he made his way to the safe containing the designs. Picking the lock was easy, as was locating the A0 designs. The original draft and the final designs were kept together. He was just picking them up when he heard a forman yell "What the Devil are you playing at?!" Pierce jumped and dropped the plans. He looked around and saw that the forman had actually been yelling at an apprentice who was about to weld a firebox door shut. He took a brief moment to reflect on the irony of panicking during what should have been a relatively easy job, then picked up the A0 designs and put them up his pants leg. He then relocked the safe and slipped out of the workshop. He took the stolen designs to the LMS works at Horwich and Hughes waisted no time in building the engine.

At last it was complete. The locomotive was an 0-6-2 pacific, but it was also unrecognizable from the A3 class it was supposed to be a prototype of.

"Well Mr. Pierce," Hughes said, "since it was your work that this engine possible, I think you should have the honor of naming it."

Pierce smiled. "Thank you, Sir. If it would be alright, I'd like to call it Henry Pierce, after my old Dad."

"Henry Pierce it is then," Hughes replied.

A few hours later Henry Pierce was being taken for his first test run. The new engine didn't know how steaming was supposed to feel, but he knew he didn't like it. They'd barely made to the open line when he stopped dead, unable to keep steam up.

Hughes was only slightly concerned. "There's always a few bugs on the first one," he said, but this was supposed to be the completed and bug free version of the design.

They brought the engine back to workshop and went to look at the plans again. Hughes' face darkened when he read them. "Mr. Pierce," he called sweetly, "would you come over here, please?"

Pierce came over to the table. When he bent over to look at the plans Hughes grabbed his head and slammed it into the table.

"You took the wrong plans, you idiot!" he thundered. "The men were in such a hurry that no one noticed this is the first draft. Haven only knows how many problems it has." He turned away slowly and said calmly, "Your payment, Mr. Pierce, will be that locomotive. Do as you like with it." And he stormed away.

Pierce left the yard in Henry a short time later. It took a fortnight of pick-pocketing but he finally managed to collect enough money to bribe enough signalmen to get him to Barrow-in-Furness. Once he was there he took a train to Vicarstown to speak to Topham Hatt.

"So you say you have an Atlantic C1 to sell?" Hatt asked.

"Correct Sir, and you can name your own price." Pierce was hoping the NWR's engine crisis would work in his favour.

It was. Hatt knew this sounded too good to be true, but he also wasn't sure he had much choice. "The price will be minimal," he warned.

"That's fine," Pierce replied. "I'll have Henry in your main shed by tonight." He delivered the engine promptly at midnight then slipped away unseen. About a week later he was having a drink when his usual messenger delivered a note from Topham Hatt. It read "You will do the job I ask of you, and I will not arrange for your arrest." Also included was proof that Hatt could indeed make good on his threat.

The following night Pierce found himself at the LMS workshop at Derby. Hatt had received word that Hughes was planning modification to the L&Y 25 Class, and he wanted those designs. Pierce, knowing this job could well make or break him, was exponentially more careful to get the right plans this time. Once he had them in hand he took them to Tidmouth. Hatt had asked his former employer, A.W. Dry to do him a favour and construct the engine cheaply. Pierce handed the plans to Old Mr. Dry and looked around the workshop. He noticed to unfinished engines near the back. Each had a piece of note paper tacked on it with the name written in pencil. The smaller one was Scruff, and the larger one was Gator. They were clearly steam engines, but they had motors like an automobile. Something that advanced had to worth some money.

"Hey!" Old Mr. Dry said. "I'll not have you doing here what you did in Wolverhampton."

Pierce made a note that word traveled fast and far and decided to leave this one alone. He knew a lot of people would eventually be looking for him, so he relocated to Walney Island under the name Timothy Dancer.

A.W. Dry completed the engine in a timely manor. They didn't have blue paint, so Hatt agreed to let the engine be painted red. He also allowed Old Mr. Dry to name the engine out of gratitude and respect. The red engine was christened Pyxis and entered service immediately. Henry was sent to Crovan's Gate and was repaired as much as possible using spare parts that had come with Gordon. It wasn't a permanent solution, but it allowed to pull trains. Dancer often saw Henry and Pyxis crossing the stone bridge (known locally as 'the Big Dipper') from Sodor to Walney. He wound up owning a small hotel with his wife, but he always smiled at the thought of his past life.


	8. Jekyll and Hyde

Thomas and Friends and The Railway Series are owned by The Awdry Family/Hit Entertainment. Original characters are owned by me.

Jekyll and Hyde

Change was sweeping across the North Western. For one thing all the tender engines, except the two on loan, were given Fowler tenders instead of their originals. They also had their numbers painted on their sides. More importantly the base of operations had been moved to Tidmouth, leading to Vicarstown's demotion to ordinary station and the closure of the shunting yards there. Mr. Hatt had also struck a deal with the Other Railway, which allowed the NWR to build an engine shed and workshop in Barrow Yard. Posey was sent to help get these open while Pepi helped build the new yards in Tidmouth. Barrow became the terminus for a car ferry service over the Walney Channel which was pulled by Amy. The other part of the deal was that the Other Railway was allowed the lease part of the branch line from Barrow to Norramby. This service was run by Hughes steam railmotor 10617, Penny. The Other Railway was also beginning a service to Tidmouth. This would be pulled by a streamlined engine named Duchess of Atholl, who would bring in her train, stay the night, and go home the next day.

Closer to home, Topham Hatt was dealing with other changes. The manager of the line to Ballaswein had asked for permission to close. Since the lines out of Harwick were so isolated from the rest of the network, Hatt had let them go on practically as individual companies. That said, he knew the letter was just a formality and that the closure process was probably well underway. This meant that the two engines who ran the line would have to go somewhere. It was that fact that he found the engines discussing in the new Tidmouth Sheds. The shed was a large building with a turntable in the middle and ten births surrounding it, so the engines could all see each others faces as they spoke. It had made conversations much more impacting.

"They'll probably be cut up," 98462 sneered.

"Mr. Hatt will find somewhere for them, surely," Pyxis replied.

"Not this time, those two engines are 4ft gauge," 98462 said. "Name a single other railway of that gauge."

It was a good point. The Harwick and Ballaswein had been one of the most unique railways on the Island, gauge included.

"That won't matter," Edward said. "Mr. Hatt never lets an engine down if he can help it. Whatever it takes, he'll find somewhere for them." Edward had in fact been left in the shed for a few weeks since Mr. Hatt had deemed a Director's Train an 'unnecessary luxury', so the fact that he still held faith in Topham Hatt held a lot of weight.

98462 was getting ready for a comeback and 87546 was preparing to shut him up when Mr. Hatt walked in.

"Thank you, Edward," he said. "I have indeed found a place for H1 and H2, and gauge won't come into it." He shot a pointed look at 98462. "Thomas, there will be a delivery arriving by lorry about noon. I'd like you to be ready to help unload it."

"Yes Sir," Thomas replied. As instructed he was ready at noon when the Dyson lorry brought in the delivery. It turned out to be two tank engines that had been converted to standard gauge, rather hurriedly by the look of it. The other odd thing about them was that they had large gears behind their bunkers, which connected to their rear wheels. "Hello, I'm Thomas," the blue engine greeted.

"Hello," said H1. "I'm Sebastian, but I prefer Bash for short."

"I'm Dash," H2 said. "That's my full name, unlike my brother's."

Mr. Hatt came up to greet them. "Ah, Bash and Dash. It's so good to see you again."

"Likewise Sir," the twins said in unison.

"Thomas, after you've gotten them off the lorry, I'd like you to show them how to work in the yard."

"Yes Sir," Thomas replied. "Does this mean they'll be taking my job in the yard?" Thomas had recently been reassigned to the branch line to Ffarquar, but Mr. Hatt had told him to wait a week or so before starting his new job.

"Bash will," Mr. Hatt replied. "I'll need Dash to handle the yard at Barrow."

The twins were about to speak up but Thomas made a face that begged them not to. He wasn't sure what, but something seemed to be wrong with Mr. Hatt. Bash and Dash could see it too and stayed silent.

Once they were unloaded and steamed up Thomas took them to the yard to show them how to do things.

Meanwhile, Pyxis was in a siding next to a new engine named James.

"Well, first you steal my design, then you steal my colour," Pyxis remarked harshly.

James had had a hard time with the Troublesome Trucks and was in no mood. "Actually, the way I heard it, my modification sketches were stolen to build you, so technically _you_ stole _my_ design."

"Well did you have to be red?" Pyxis snapped. "I was proud of being the only red engine here and I'm not having it spoiled by the likes of you."

"You are the likes of me!" James pointed out. "Anyway I didn't ask to be this colour."

"Have it changed then," Pyxis suggested.

"I'm not changing to that blue for you!" James replied.

"Well I'm going through life having people thinking I'm you!" Pyxis wheeshed.

"Red doesn't really suit either of you, does it?" Dash remarked.

"Why don't you have alternate grey and brown like we did?" Bash suggested.

"James' wheels are grey already," Dash laughed.

James and Pyxis put aside their resent of each other and turned on Bash and Dash.

"Don't you two have work to do?" James huffed.

"Actually we have to collect the coal trucks in these sidings," Dash told him, "so we have to wait here for the shunter to couple us to our train."

"Well is it possible for you to be quiet wall you do it?" Pyxis asked.

"Of course, but we won't," Bash answered.

Thomas steamed past with Gordon's coaches. "You've learned well," he called to Bash and Dash.

"Thank you, Thomas!" They called back as they puffed away with their trucks.

Just as they steamed away 98462 slid in on the other side of Pyxis. "Ugh, those two again," he remarked.

James and Pyxis both glared. They still remembered what he'd said in the shed the night before.

"Yes, those two again," Pyxis replied. "Waiting for a train, are you?"

98462 was still trying to rid the railway of what he considered out of date engines. At the moment the newest engine on the railway was Pyxis. James, by contrast, was actually the oldest despite being the latest arrival. He wondered if that was part of the reason for the tension between them. "I simply noticed you were upset and thought I'd give you someone to vent to," he said innocently.

"Rubbish!" Pyxis declared. "Since I've known you've only ever cared about yourself. And don't think we've forgotten you wanted them scrapped last night."

"Well, if they can't keep up..."

"James!" Pyxis wheeshed.

"That's it exactly James!" 98462 agreed.

"James, aren't you the oldest one here?" Pyxis reminded him.

"Age has nothing to do with it," James replied. "It's about pulling trains. Engines that can't should be put on display somewhere and kept out of the way."

"Or put out of their misery," 98462 mumbled a little too loudly.

"I wouldn't go that far," James said.

"Nor should you!" 87546 said as he backed up beside him. "Like it or not, 98462, Topham Hatt is different from other businessmen and doesn't just cast engines aside."

"Is the entire railway converging on this siding?" Pyxis asked.

"You'll see," 98462 growled. "Your precious Topham Hatt will prove just as cruel and greedy as the others in the end." And he steamed away.

"Thank you, 87546," Pyxis said.

"Think nothing of it," he replied. "Gordon was right, we all reach a point when trains become a bit much, and it's nice to know a real railway will still want us. And being a display, James, can get old quickly." He trucks were coupled to him, and he left.

That night all the engines were at the coaling stage refueling and having a wash down. All but one, that is.

"Where's 98462?" Henry asked.

He was answered by 98462's whistle in the distance. A minute later 98462 steamed into the yard smirking triumphantly. His train was the five Coffee Pots with a brakevan at the back. He whistled to the others and steamed past.

"Where is he taking them?" Thomas asked.

"To the scrap yard," a familiar voice said quietly.

All eyes turned to Mr. Hatt.

"What did you Sir?" Gordon asked.

Mr. Hatt cleared his throat. "The Coffee Pots were elderly, underpowered, and years of hard work have pushed them beyond the point of economic repair."

"But you can't!" 87546 cut in.

Hatt glared up at the engine. "Engines will not tell me what to do, especially not engines on loan to this railway."

"But you've never scrapped an engine," 87546 said.

"None were ever this bad before," Hatt responded. "The Board of Directors was adamant."

"Hale," 87546 mumbled.

"This is still a business!" Hatt thundered. "Economics has to come into it at some point."

"What does that mean for the rest of us?" 87546 demanded. He shot a pointed look at Henry, who still wasn't in full working order.

All eyes turned to the shed, where Edward had been left for over a month.

Hatt looked from engine to engine. He could tell they were all thinking the same thing as 87546, but the LNER engine was the only one who dared say so. "You and 98462 will be returned to the LNER tomorrow. I won't have such rude and nasty engines on my railway as you two." He turned and walked slowly away.

A hush fell over the engines. Just thirty minutes ago Topham Hatt had been a hero to all of them. The symbol of the promise that, come what may, the would all have a safe home on the North Western Railway. Now he was just another fat director. One by one they all rolled into the shed. Tomorrow would be a very different day for all of them.


	9. An Outside View

Thomas and Friends and The Railway Series are owned by The Awdry Family/Hit Entertainment. Original characters are owned by me.

An Outside View

The Duchess of Atholl had been uncoupled from her first train to Tidmouth and was making her way to the engine shed. She would have to sleep there every other night because the express runs came in one day and left the next. This was because it took a full day for a run from Tidmouth to London, where expresses terminated. She wasn't sure what to expect from the North Western engines, but she intended to make the best of it. Their distrusting faces made her slightly uncomfortable as she turned on the turntable. "Hello, I'm the Duchess of Atholl, pleasure to meet you all."

No one spoke at first.

"Likewise," Edward finally replied.

"We'll see about that, Little Edward," Gordon snapped.

"Um, I'm sorry?" the Duchess asked.

"You're from the Other Railway, aren't you?" Henry questioned.

"The Other Railway?" asked the Duchess, becoming a bit bewildered.

"The London, Midland and Scottish," James answered sharply.

"They tried to absorb our railway about a year ago," Gordon explained bluntly. "That said, we'd like to know why you're here."

"To pull trains, perhaps?" Bash quipped with a hint of frustration in his voice.

"She can answer for herself, Sebastian." Pyxis admonished.

"As, Sebastian is it, said, I'm here to pull trains," the Duchess replied.

"What allows your company to run trains here?" Gordon demanded.

"The lease money my chairman pays your chairman," the Duchess said with confidence.

"Hmm, very well," Gordon conceded.

"But we'll not stand any nonsense," Henry warned.

"I didn't intend to start any," the Duchess said with rising anger.

"That's we ask," Pyxis replied. "Now good night."

The sudrian engines all went to sleep quickly, leaving the Duchess to wonder exactly what she'd done to offend them.

Edward noticed she was still up, and he could see what she was thinking by her face. "I'm sorry for the way they treated you tonight, if you had come a week earlier it would have gone better."

The Duchess raised an eyebrow. "A week ago? But that big blue windbag said the LMS tried to absorb your railway a year ago."

"Correct," Edward replied, "but they wouldn't ordinarily have been this rude to a newcomer." He explained about what had happened with Mr. Hatt (he had now acquired the name Fat Director as a direct show of disrespect) and his decision to scrap the Coffee Pots. He also told her about the massive personality changes that had come about as a result. 98462 had been a twisted engine, but knowing that the Fat Director might not come through in the end had caused his 'survival of the fittest' mentality to take hold in the bigger engines. When she understood that he told her about the fight to resist amalgamation and explain why the engines had reacted so to the presence of what they called the Other Railway.

"I see," the Duchess said. "Sounds like it's been a difficult week."

"Indeed," Edward relied. "They're good sorts, really, just going through a rough patch."

"I understand. Thank you, Edward."

"My pleasure," Edward said kindly.

The Duchess looked at Edward. He'd said he'd been in the shed a long time, and his paint reflected that fact. "Edward," she asked gently, "are you worried?"

Edward considered that question. "At times. I wonder if I'll ever steam again, and I miss my old friends all along the line, and I'll admit I do wonder why I haven't been given a train for so long. But deep down I still have faith. I'm sure the time will come when I am needed for one reason or another, and when it does I'll be ready. And if it doesn't, I've had a long and fulfilling career. Pulling the Director's Train is a level of distinction few engines reach, and I can easily look back on my life in contentment. In short, when my time comes, I will be ready."

The Duchess let a small tear fall. "You're a very brave engine, Edward."

The old engine smiled. "Thank you, Duchess of Atholl," he replied.

"Call me Duchess," she said quietly.

The next morning the Duchess was at the coaling stage preparing for her return journey. She could see Gordon, James and Henry at the station.

"Watch my pull away with the Express," Gordon said smugly. "Then you'll see why I'm the only engine the Fat Director lets take it."

The Duchess rolled her eyes. After today the timetable was being changed so that passengers would go one way on Gordon's train and go the other on Duchess' depending on who was on which end of the line at any time. This meant she would almost never see him, for which she was grateful. She could already see what Edward meant about the big engines.

"Then why doesn't he let you take the train strait on to London?" Bash asked cheekily.

"The impertinence!" Gordon wheeshed. "Clearly the Fat Director needs me here."

The Duchess, of course, knew the real reason was that the North Western didn't have a lease to go beyond Barrow. This was also why she could take her train strait on to St. Pancras and he couldn't. Nonetheless, his response had told her all she needed. Now that scrapping was a threat, the engines had become insecure and their egos had become their prize possessions. That was a wound only time could heal, but at least it gave her an explanation for why they acted the way they did. At last it was time for her to take her own train. She backed onto the platform and saw Pyxis at the opposite platform. "Hello," she said politely.

"Hello," Pyxis replied shortly.

"You weren't quite as rude as the others last night," she remarked.

"Well, yes, I'm not as threatened as the others," Pyxis admitted.

"Then it is insecurity," the Duchess observed.

Pyxis looked at the streamlined engine. "Very perceptive, Duchess of Atholl."

"Duchess," she said. "You know, I wasn't here when the vertical boiler engines were scrapped, but it seems to me that Mr. Hatt didn't have much choice. They were practically in pieces before he took over the railway, and it was Mr. Hale that made the motion to have them cut up, and I understand that even the rest of the board was leaning against it. The rest of you are maintained rather well and you're clearly strong engines. I'm sure the same thing isn't going to happen to you."

Pyxis considered her words. "That does all make sense."

"Sometimes things can be seen more clearly from a few steps back," the Duchess replied. "From what I heard from Edward, everyone just needs to calm down and really look at what happened."

Pyxis thought it over. "I think, you're right. I'll tell the others that as well."

"I'm glad," the Duchess said. "Thank you, Pyxis."

"Thank you, Duchess." The red engine replied.

Next she met Thomas at the Junction to his new branch line. She noticed that he looked glum. "Is something wrong?" She asked, knowing full well what it probably was.

"It's just that, see there were five engines who used to run this line. Just before I took over they were cut up and I can't help feeling guilty."

"But you've no reason to," the Duchess told him. "That was Mr. Hatt's decision, and nothing you could've done would have stopped it. Your job now is to run this line as best you can in their memory. Keep their legacy alive by making your line the one everyone thinks of when they think North Western Railway."

That did make Thomas feel a little better. "I'll try. Thank you."

"Any time," the Duchess replied. She steamed on to St. Pancras hoping that maybe she'd made things a little better here.

Meanwhile, Dash was trying to settle in at Barrow. He was still a little upset about being separated from his twin. He and Amy were in the shed when he noticed someone backing in. It looked like a coach with a boiler in front.

"Hello, my I stay here tonight?" she asked.

"Of course, any time." Amy replied.

"What kind of engine are you?" Dash asked.

"I'm a Hughes steam railmotor," the engine replied. "My name's Penny."

"I'm Dash."

"And I'm Amy, nice to meet you."

"You look rather unusual yourself, Dash," Penny said. "May ask what type of design you are?"

Dash gladly told her about how he started life as an air pump on the H&B Atmospheric Railway, the line's conversion to conventional operation and working with Bash. He also told her about being transfered to Barrow.

"You miss your twin, don't you?" Penny observed.

"Yes, I do," Dash said sadly.

"Dash," Penny asked, "when you were air pumps, how did you two move trains?"

"We were at opposite ends of the line and pushed air in or sucked it out of a tube and the pressure we created moved the train forward. We had to work together to keep the railway moving."

"Like now," Penny observed.

"Pardon me?"

"Well, you're at opposite ends of the line, and it takes both of you to shunt trains and keep the railway moving."

Dash felt his mouth drop. "Wow, I'd never thought of that."

Just then Gordon backed in. "What is that glorified carriage in our shed?"

"Stow it Gordon!" Amy ordered. "Penny, you're away from you brothers and sisters too, aren't you."

"Yes," Penny replied, "but I have a nice line now and friends like the two of you to stop me being too lonely."

Amy looked over. "Now how can you put her out, Gordon?"

Gordon didn't respond. He just closed his eyes and went to sleep.

While all this had been happening, the Fat Director had been making arrangements. First he moved Bash to Barrow to be with Dash, then he put Edward back in service on the newly reopened Brendam Branch. Stephen Hale had been strongly against both, and tried to swing the Board to agree, but Hatt had let him know in know uncertain terms who was the chairman of the company, and who made the final decisions. Scrapping those engines had left a mark on him as well, and he would not have it repeated. Bringing the engines to a point where they would respect and trust him again would be difficult, but this would be the first step.


End file.
